Honda's U.S. light-vehicle output hits 20 million

Honda became the first Japanese automaker to assemble vehicles in the United States when its $250 million assembly plant opened in Marysville, Ohio, in 1982. The first Accord off the line in November 1982 was a gray, four-door sedan. Fifty percent of the content on the initial Accords was U.S.-sourced, and the first models were sold only east of the Mississippi River.

LOS ANGELES -- Honda Motor Co. hit a U.S. milestone today by producing its 20 millionth vehicle since it began making cars in Ohio more than 30 years ago, the company said.

Honda’s plant in Marysville, Ohio, churned out its 10 millionth Accord sedan today, bringing cumulative production from Honda’s four U.S. vehicle assembly sites to 20 million units since it began producing cars in the United States in 1982.

Since becoming the first Japanese automaker to build a U.S. assembly plant, in Marysville, Honda has added assembly plants in East Liberty, Ohio; Lincoln, Ala., and Greensburg, Ind.

“We are deeply aware that our ability to reach this milestone results from the trust that 20 million customers have placed in our products, and we appreciate their support over the past three decades,” Hidenobu Iwata, CEO of Honda of America Manufacturing, said in a statement. “We also value the commitment made by tens of thousands of associates at Honda and our hundreds of suppliers in the U.S. who build products of the highest quality for our customers.”

Honda’s U.S. vehicle production totaled a record 1.3 million units last year, up 7 percent from 2012.

Honda also exported more vehicles from its U.S. factories in 2013 than it imported into America from Japan -- a first for the automaker. Honda exported 108,705 U.S.-made Honda and Acura vehicles, compared with the 88,537 it brought in from Japan last year.